Long chapter.
Disclaimer: I don't own FFVII nor its characters. I also don't own the ideas taken from Love Monster.
Both Genesis and Zack were watching as Cloud paced back and forth in Zack's apartment with a troubled look on his face.
"Spikey, is there something wrong?" Zack questioned after a full two minutes of watching Cloud walk from one end of the room to the other.
Cloud stopped mid step and turned his attention on the two. "Aerith and I had a talk a few days ago."
Zack perked up at the mention of the half phoenix's name., while Genesis looked indifferent.
"She said that it wouldn't be a bad idea if I was to tell Sephiroth and Angeal about me."
"What did she say exactly?" Genesis questioned.
"That it might be better for me in the long run. After all, SOLDIER is built partially based on trust and she said that my secret might cause some kind of an issue if they find out some time further down the track."
"So you listen to her, but not me?" Zack pouted a little.
"She's pretty much in a similar situation puppy. Of course he's going to trust her word against ours. I don't see why you're complaining though. You're getting your way."
Zack seemed think over Genesis' words for a moment and a grin slowly formed on his face. "Point taken, so when do we get to tell them?"
Cloud frowned slightly at that. "I never said that I was definitely going to tell them. I just thought that I'd mention it first and get your opinions."
Zack pouted again at those words.
"Puppy." Genesis scolded when he noticed the look that the wolf was sending the white crow. "It's not your secret to tell remember?"
"But Gen." Zack whined.
Genesis gave him another look and the wolf finally settled down. "It's Cloud's decision whether he tells them or not. We can't make him tell them." The other crow then turned his attention back to Cloud. "So what do you want us to tell you?"
"What do you think would happen if I was to tell both Sephiroth and Angeal?"
Genesis was quick to put a hand over Zack's mouth before the wolf could reply for him.
"I'd imagine Sephiroth would want to get you into SOLDIER as soon as possible. It would attract Hojo's attention, but if we say it was under Zack's recommendation we can just sweep it under his radar."
Zack pouted again as soon as Genesis let go of his mouth. "You make it sound as if I always do stuff like this."
Genesis gave him a look. "Who was it that snuck into Sephiroth's office and stole a request form? Said person also forged his signature on the aforementioned form and actually used it. I believe it was the same person who also tricked a certain weasel into getting into the Turks so that he could get his little paws on a certain blonde haired crow."
"You have to admit, something good came out of it." Zack attempted to defend himself.
"Depends on what you consider as something good." Cloud replied.
Genesis cleared his throat and the two turned their attention back to him. "As I was saying, you would probably end up with Sephiroth or my platoon."
"Why not Angeal's?" Zack questioned.
"Because you're Sephiroth's Lieutenant, so it means that you can both take care of Cloud. Angeal has mostly non magic users in his, so he wouldn't be able to teach Cloud much, whereas mine is mostly magic users."
"Plus you have this monitor on me." Cloud fiddled with the feather that was firmly lodged in his hair.
"What does that thing to anyway?" Zack questioned. "And how does it stay in his hair?"
"It's a magic dampener and a tracking device all in one. It stays there with magic, literally, but if Cloud really wants to get rid of it, he just needs to stop feeding magic into it and it'll turn into a normal feather." Genesis explained.
"So it only works based on a mutual decision?" Zack questioned.
"Basically." Cloud replied. "I keep feeding magic into it, which pretty much sets me up alike a beckon for General Rhapsodos. Since he could pretty much be anywhere in the world I have to put more in it than usual just so that he can tell where I am and not monitor what I'm doing."
Zack gave Genesis an odd look. "Does that mean that you know when Cloudy's in the shower?"
Genesis sent him a blank look. "Do you really think that I'd use it for that?"
Zack shrugged.
"It only tells me where he is and when he's on the verge of doing something stupid, like releasing his wings to save one of my lovers from falling off the end of a highway."
"At least we're both alive. "Cloud pointed out.
"And I'm extremely grateful for that… I'm sure Sephiroth and Angel would be too if the report hadn't said that Zack and you were both knocked off the highway and that Zack saved you both by grabbing onto some random piece of debris and that Cloud passed out from magic overuse and general exhaustion. I didn't add anything else after that." Genesis seemed to think over the situation for a few more moments before he finally let it drop. He turned his attention back to Cloud. "Was there anything else you wanted to know about if you were to tell Sephiroth and Angeal about your situation?"
"They really wouldn't tell Hojo?" He questioned. Both Zack and Genesis let out a snort of laughter.
"Sephiroth has good reason to hate Hojo. Even if Sephiroth didn't like you I doubt that he would ever tell Hojo about you." Genesis replied.
"And there's no way Angeal's honour would allow him to share your secret with anyone. In fact, he'd probably be the one to stop people from attempting to spread it." Zack added.
"So it would be safe to talk to both of them about me being what I am?" Cloud questioned and the other two nodded their heads.
"We've been trying to tell you that this whole time." Genesis pointed out. Cloud still looked a bit unsure.
There was a long silence between the three before Cloud seemed to make up his mind.
"I'll tell them."
It felt like months since Johnny had properly seen Cloud. Ever since that incident with that rat and their revoked privileges to the training rooms, the half crane never showed up for class, but he knew that the cadet hadn't been kicked out of the program, otherwise Luxiere would have said something and he knew that the commander was still onto him, so he couldn't ask about the other cadet's whereabouts, or even feign concern. Then a few days ago he heard about Cloud's involvement with the behemoth in the middle of the complex, so he knew that he was still in the building.
"Johnny, what are you thinking about?" The rat that had originally attacked Cloud was bugging him again. He had figured that the rat was attracted to him, but that didn't mean that he was interested in him. He was just letting him hang around because he thought that he'd be useful.
"What do you want now Manx?" He questioned and the rat pouted.
"You could at least call me by my name."
Johnny sighed. "If I call you by your name would that make you leave me alone?"
The rat vehemently shook his head. "If I leave then you'd be all alone… You're not thinking about that dirty little half breed are you?"
"And if I am?"
"Then you should stop. He's probably been kicked out of the program by now. If I wasn't just his lack of strength, then I'm sure that incident with the Behemoth would have gotten him kicked out. I heard that he fainted during the fight and Lieutenant Fair had to carry him back to the complex. I mean if he can't handle a little fight, then how is he going to handle being on the battle field?"
Johnny gave the rat a look. "Lieutenant Fair actually carried him back?" He was fuming slightly at the thought of someone else touching his crane.
"Yeah, apparently he's staying in Lieutenant Fair's apartment. Don't know how he managed that. Do you think he's sleeping with the Lieutenant? I wonder if the Generals all know about it."
Johnny let out a somewhat animalistic growl and Manx backed off slightly. "Johnny, I think you should forget about him." He said in an attempt to soothe the cat.
"That halfling is mine. I went thought a lot to keep everyone else away from him. Even that persistent Tifa, not that it was hard with her father not liking him." The cat's attitude was really starting to scare Manx. "If that dog so much as thinks about touching him in the wrong way, first class or not. I'll murder him."
"Johnny, seriously, I think your obsession with that Halfling is unhealthy."
The cat laughed at that. "And your obsession with me is?"
The rat looked down at the ground. "I'm not that obsessed with you." Before he know it Johnny had a hand holding the rat's face so that he couldn't look away and the cat's face was impossibly close.
"Don't lie to me Belias. I can see right through you." Johnny could feel the rat's heart starting to race as soon as he had used his name. "So, either you're going to help me with getting my little crane back or are you going to turn me in. So what's it going to be little mouse?"
The rat had to think over his words for a long time. Either help Johnny and potentially lose his place in the military, as well as possibly losing the cat, or he could just let things play out and he would lose the cat anyway. It was a lose-lose situation either way. Sighing, he pushed the cat's hand away. "I'm not going to help you Johnny."
The cat narrowed his eyes at him. "So, you're against me?"
"I just want you to give this whole thing up! You're endangering your future in the military just for a stupid Halfling." He felt his back slam up against the wall.
"He's not just a stupid Halfling."
"Korat… Let me go." The rat said calmly. Staring dead on into Johnny's eyes challengingly. The cat held onto him for a second longer before he finally let him go and Belias luckily landed on his feet. "I'm not going to report you or anything. I just don't want to see you put yourself in a position that you can't get out of just because of some Halfling, but it that's what you want, then I can't help you Johnny."
With those words Belias walked out of the room.